There were worrying scenes at the Cincinnati Open on Monday as Arthur Rinderknech collapsed on the court in the middle of his match. Several players have been struggling in the heat since the tournament started last week, and temperatures reached 32 degrees celsius on Monday.
Rinderknech dropped the first set of his third-round match against Felix Auger-Aliassime but went an early break up in set two. After Auger-Aliassime broke back to level the score at 2-2, Rinderknech trudged to the back of the court to grab a towel and attempted to sit down, falling on his back. He continued playing but didn’t win another game, and soon retired to put the Canadian into the last 16.
The cameras were initially focused on No. 23 seed Auger-Aliassime as he prepared to serve after breaking Rinderknech. But there was a commotion on the other side of the court, and the umpire could be heard saying: “Arthur, are you okay?”
Auger-Aliassime noticed his opponent had hit the floor and raced over to help, bringing a towel. The umpire followed, and medics soon took to the court as Rinderknech stayed on the ground, bringing him ice.
TV cameras initially cut away and showed shots of the crowd while Rinderknech received assistance. He eventually got up and continued playing but lost the game, and then received further attention from the trainer during the changeover.
Once it became clear the world No. 70 was able to play on, Sky Sports showed replays of the concerning fall.
“This is Arthur Rinderknech just collapsing at the back of the court. Medical team came on to assist him. This is a match involving Felix Auger-Aliassime. They’ve been on court for just shy of two hours, an hour and 53 minutes,” Gigi Salmon told viewers.
“He was then treated back at his chair. You can see the man trying to figure out the air conditioning unit. Worrying scenes, signs and times. That’s the ice towel that he will put anywhere and everywhere to try and cool himself down.”
The French star, who upset No. 11 seed Casper Ruud in the previous round, was broken in the next game and retired with Auger-Aliassime leading 7-6(4) 4-2.
Salmon added: “Arthur Rinderknech, who just a short while ago collapsed at the back of the court, was not able to continue. Before that point, he leant down, his hands on his knees, almost bent double, barely able to move right now.
“It’s really difficult to see. These are such tough conditions. [When he was] sat down on his bench, he had an ice towel around his neck, he had an ice towel on his legs, and we just hope he recovers quickly.”
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